Succession planning is rarely easy, but when life circumstances accelerate the timeline, it requires courage, clarity, and deep trust in your team. This episode explores how to manage an ownership and client transition with empathy, structure, and transparency.

KayDee Cole is the founder of Clarity Wealth Development, an RIA based in Corvallis, Oregon, that manages $200 million in AUM for 220 client households. Listen in as KayDee shares how she navigated an expedited succession plan after a cancer recurrence, selling equity to her COO through a seller-financed loan and preparing other team members for ownership. We also talk about the structured four-meeting process she created to transition clients to new advisors, how she coached her team through readiness conversations, and how transparent communication helped retain nearly all clients through the change.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/468

A key part of converting a contact or prospect into a client is an advisor's ability to explain what they offer and to show how they're the right person to solve their pain points. This episode explores how leading with empathy, asking the right questions, and storytelling can help financial advisors turn curiosity into client commitment.

Derek Kinney is the founder of Success for Advisors, a speaking and coaching firm that helps financial advisors communicate more effectively with prospects and clients. Listen in as Derek shares how he teaches advisors to open conversations with relatable "You know how..." statements that frame a prospect's problem and position the advisor as the solution (without giving away the fix too soon). You'll learn how using a calm, deliberate speaking style can convey authority and trust, why his "million-dollar questions" uncover what clients really want, and how sharing the successes of current clients in similar situations can move prospects naturally toward engagement.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/467

Growth rarely comes without sacrifice—and for many advisory firm owners, that means making bold investments that might pinch margins today to create momentum for tomorrow. This episode explores how strategic hiring, branding, and compensation design can help accelerate growth while building a stronger, more scalable team.

Morgan Nichols is the CEO of LifeBranch Wealth Partners, an independent broker-dealer practice based in Grapevine, Texas, overseeing $630 million in AUM for 830 households. Listen in as Morgan shares how she doubled her firm's size in just three and a half years in part by investing ahead of the curve, from hiring before capacity hits a breaking point to rebranding her firm to reflect a broader, growth-oriented vision. You'll learn how she designed clear career paths and compensation models that balance stability with opportunity, why she added a dedicated business development director to fuel new growth, and what helped her stay resilient through challenging growth stages.

For show notes and more visit: https://www.kitces.com/466